Hoi An goes Dutch
with fund to restore relic

The Netherlands-based Prince Claus Fund has donated an
unspecified sum of money for restoring a degraded relic in world heritage city
Hoi An.

A centuries-old house at 14 Nguyen Thai Hoc Street that faced a
high risk of collapse has received almost VND 1.5 billion (US$75,000), partly
from the Fund and rest from the city, for its restoration.

The work is expected to be finished in June.

The city has earmarked VND5 billion this year for upgrading
the city’s relics while Quang
Nam Province,
where Hoi An is situated, has lent VND1 billion.

Vietnam attends tour expo in RoK

A show of Vietnamese traditional ao dai (long robe) was part
of activities to open the Daegu-Gyeongbuk Tour Expo 2011 in the Republic of
Korea (RoK)’s Daegu city, one of the three largest tourism fairs in the East
Asian country.

Vietnam
introduced the images of its landscape, people and information on tours and
flights to the country at the expo which opened on April 15.

Addressing the opening ceremony, Vietnamese Ambassador to
RoK Tran Trong Toan welcomed the organisation of cultural exchange activities
between the Vietnam
and RoK to strengthen mutual understanding and cooperation in many fields,
including culture, tourism and fashion.

Last year, 520,000 RoK tourists visited Vietnam.

The expo drew the participation of more than 200 businesses
and organisations with 400 booths and is expected to attract 68,000 visitors.

Daegu-Gyeongbuk Tour Expo 2011 will last until April 18.

First ethnic group
youth festival opens

The first festival for young people from ethnic minorities
officially opened in the Culture-Tourism Village of Vietnamese Ethnic Groups in
Dong Mo, Son
Tay, Hanoi on
April 17, attended by more than 300 delegates.

Addressing the event, Deputy Minister of Culture, Sports and
Tourism, Ho Anh Tuan, said that through the festival, the organising board
hoped to raise awareness and responsibility of the young generation for
preserving and developing cultural traditions, while promoting the
Culture-Tourism Village of Vietnamese Ethnic Groups.

He also confirmed that each group has its own culture, and
the conservation and spread of cultural values is very important to all people,
especially the youth.

Under the theme “Vietnamese youth preserve and develop the
traditional cultures of ethnic minority groups”, the festival is a chance for
young people all over the country to meet and exchange experiences.

The main activities of the festival included visiting the
statue of the heroic martyrs and Ho Chi Minh’s Mausoleum as well as cultural
exchanges among ethnic minorities and a seminar on preserving and developing
traditional cultural values during the renewal process.

A number of other activities were held such as a youth camp,
folk games and discussions about managing Cham, Thai, Muong, Brau, Jrai and Ma
villages.

A programme entitled “Colour of Youth-Colour of Solidarity”
was also organised on April 17 evening.

The event honoured Vietnam’s Ethnic Minority Cultural
Day (April 19) in response to Youth Year 2011.

Excavation reveals
reach of ancient culture

Archeologists who are excavating in the Tang River valley in
the Truong Son Mountain area in central Vietnam have surprisingly found
potteries, pot graves and other artifacts of the ancient Sa Huynh culture.

Until this excavation, which has been carried out by Quang Ngai General Museum
and the Vietnam Archeology Institute since last December, Sa Huynh Culture, one
of the three major ancient cultures in Vietnam
besides Dong Son and Oc Eo, was thought to be limited to the coastal plains of
central and south Vietnam.

However, the potteries and graves, which are mostly pot
graves rather than jar graves as commonly found at other excavation sites of Sa
Huynh Culture, convince archeologists that Sa Huynh Culture, which dated from
1,000 B.C to 200 A.D, covered different areas of different terrains.

“This shows Sa Huynh was a powerfully resilient culture,”
archeologist Doan Ngoc Khoi of the excavation team said, explaining that to survive
Sa Huynh people spread to coastal land, islands as well as mountains.

Khoi said some archeologists had considered this excavation
a waste of time, believing Sa Huynh people couldn’t have lived on mountainous
areas.

But Khoi said this excavation led to an even more important
and interesting finding: Sa Huynh Cutlure in its earlier period moved from the
Central Highlands through the Truong Son mountain range down to the plains.

In its later period, this culture moved in the opposite
direction, from the plains up to the mountains.

Co Loa to seek UNESCO
cultural heritage status

The Center for Preservation of Co Loa Relics – Thang Long
Ancient Citadel has asked for permission to conduct research and compile a
dossier for the Co Loa Citadel to seek world cultural heritage status.

The Co Loa Ancient Citadel is located in the suburbs of Hanoi, about 20
kilometers from the centre of the city.

Covering nearly 500ha, it is a place to worship King An
Duong Vuong and Princess My Chau with the magic crossbow legend that has been
woven into the anti-foreign aggression history of the Vietnamese people.

The citadel and its remains are a significant cultural
heritage of the Viet people.

Many archaeological sites have been discovered there,
reflecting the continuous development of the nation in many periods, especially
the Dong Son culture of the Bronze Age.

Ly descendants pay
tribute to ancestors

88 delegations of Ly descendants both at home and abroad
attended the Do Temple Festival in Dinh Bang ward, Tu Son town in the northern province of Bac
Ninh on April 17, which falls on the 15th of the third lunar month.

On the same day of the same lunar month 1001 years ago was
the day Ly Cong Uan came to the throne. Later generations chose this date for
an annual festival to pay homage to the kings of the Ly Dynasty (1009-1225).

The three-day festival, starting from April 16, opened with
a palanquin procession participated by thousands of people in traditional
uniforms.

Within the framework of the event, there will be a wide
range of cultural and sports activities, including love duet and classical
drama performances, poetry exchange, chess playing and volleyball competitions.

Visitors also had the chance to enjoy a bonsai exhibition,
economic and handicraft fairs, firework displays on April 17 and 18.

Indonesian culture
shines in HCM city

Indonesian Cultural Day, themed “Indonesia- Multicolour
discovery”, opened in Ho Chi Minh City
on April 17.

Speaking at the opening ceremony, Indonesian Consul General
Bambang Tarsanto said the event will help youngsters experiment a miniature Indonesia with
diversified cultural features of nearly 250 human races living on some 17,000
islands in the country. He added that the event is also an opportunity for the
two countries’ youth to exchange with each other.

Participants will have a chance to feel and discover Indonesia’s
cultural features and heritage sites. They will have the chance to learn how to
make Indonesian traditional cooking and play musical instrument Angklung, which
was recognised as world cultural, as well as enjoying various ethnic music and
fashion shows.

The event, jointly organised by the Indonesian Consul
General in HCM City and HCM City Union of Friendship
Organisations, will last till April 25.

Vietnam
participates in Malaysia
charity fair

An international charity fair 2011 opened in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia on April 16, attracting
thousands of local and foreign tourists.

On display were 50 arts and handicraft stalls from over 40
countries.

Two Vietnamese handicraft and food booths featuring
traditional products such as sweet and sour grated salad, steamed glutinous
rice and lacquer paintings drew the attention of many international visitors.

The charity fair was a chance for diplomatic representative
offices in Malaysia
to push cultural exchange, promote tourism and strengthen solidarity.

During the event, many foreign embassies in Malaysia,
including the Vietnamese embassy, and domestic and foreign businesses donated
money for charity to support victims of disaster and people living in areas of
conflict.

PV